


You Make Me Feel Alive

by ama_janee



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Dancing, Gender Neutral Apprentice, Kissing, Other, but Julian is a giant anyways, just some pure fluff, short Apprentice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-25 13:08:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14977820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ama_janee/pseuds/ama_janee
Summary: Requested: Julian fluff with a short fem/gender neutral apprentice. Also requested that I make their teeth rot.Julian and the apprentice start the night dancing at the Rowdy Raven and Julian gets a bit sentimental, and expresses his feelings with blunt honesty. It seems like a good time to get some peace and quiet and just enjoy each other’s company.





	You Make Me Feel Alive

**Author's Note:**

> Visit my tumblr to request a work! @ama-hates-julian. I do SFW and NSFW so don’t be shy!

“Dance with me.” 

I was taken completely by surprise at the request, and I looked up at Julian with confusion clearly written across my face. He blushes and glances away, eye focusing somewhere across the tavern, at the small band, I notice. The music is a rare treat according to Julian, it’s a specific group that plays on dancing nights. The main floor of the tavern had been cleared of tables (now pressed close together at the side), and were replaced by a handful of couples dancing to the quickly moving beat. I smile at the prospect of seeing Julian dance, and eagerly agree. A grin splits across his face, and he sweeps me into an empty space on the floor. 

The height difference is a challenge, but we get the hang of it in two or three songs. We move with an almost frenzied amount of energy, pure joy fueling every movement. He’s surprisingly elegant, his long limbs moving fluidly and his feet following the quick rhythm with ease I can hardly follow. His energy is contagious, and it’s probably the only thing helping me move at the same pace. I’m pulled in closer, our bodies almost flush as we move- until he spins me out and I’m caught up with another partner. The shifting continues, moving from partner to partner with each new song, and finally I find myself back in Julian’s arms. 

We must’ve been dancing for a least an hour when we meet, and during a particularly high energy part of the song Julian swings me off my feet, spinning in a circle before placing me where I started. We’re both laughing, pausing our dance to catch our breath. Julian looks down at me, and brushes a loose strand of hair out of my face, leaving his hand curled into my hair. He continues looking at me like that, and when he next speaks I can barely hear his soft voice over the noise of the tavern. 

“You make me feel alive, you know.” He’s beat red, and I’m blushing as well at his blunt comment of affection. It’s rare for him to put his feelings so bluntly, and I take great pleasure that he felt confident enough to say something like that to me. I take his hand and softly smile at him, wanting to escape the crowd for somewhere more peaceful. 

“You wanna head somewhere quieter?” He agrees, and we go for a stroll into the cool air. We wander through the streets until the panicked screech of the raven sends us scurrying through back alleys to a deserted place. Our running leads us down to the docks, and we end up sitting in the same spot we were at when Julian gave his best effort at dumping me. “Do you remember that time you tried to push me away here?” I tease, knowing we’ve come to an understanding over the unhappy moment. 

“Of course. And I remember the time you got some sense into this thick skull,” he chuckled slightly, and wrapped an arm around me, pulling me close to his side, “I’m not going anywhere. I’m right where I belong now.” We sit in a peaceful silence, just watching the waves glint in the moonlight. His hand is gently tracing shapes on my shoulder, and I snuggle closer into his side. 

After sitting quietly for some stretch of time, I tug on Julian’s shirt to get his attention. He turned to me with a slightly raised brow, and I frowned slightly as I had to reach to pull Julian down close enough that I could kiss him. It’s just a brush of the lips, like we’re afraid of something shattering the peace, but after a moment of stillness with nothing happening to draw our attention, Julian chases my mouth and catches it in a gentle and passion filled kiss. He tastes sweet, of whatever new drink he had tried at the Raven earlier in the night. He pulls away just to nuzzle his face in my neck, littering my exposed flesh with soft kisses. I unintentionally yawn, then blush and cover my mouth. I certainly don’t want Julian to think he’s boring me or anything. 

“It’s getting late. Allow me to walk you home?” Julian asks in a soft voice. I manage to nod, just now realizing how tired I really am. He helps me stand, and then wraps an arm over my shoulder to keep me pressed into his side as we walk back to my shop. The walk is thankfully uneventful, no distant footsteps or any warning cries from the raven. It is rare we can get from place to place with no outside interference, so I’m grateful for the peaceful time alongside Julian. I’m almost disappointed to reach my shop door. Julian peers down at me with a sad looking smile as I press my hand on the shop door, briefly concentrating to drop the protective spell and unlock it. “Well, I’ll be seeing you then love.” 

“You know, you can stay if you want.” I offer. Julian pulls back slightly in surprise, blinking curiously at me. 

“Well I don’t want to intrude, I don’t think Asra would appreciate-“

“Do you think I’d invite you in if Asra was home? He left two days ago and shouldn’t be back until late tomorrow night.” He grins at that, and gestures to the door. 

“Lead the way then beautiful.” I let us into the shop, and lead him upstairs to the relatively small room Asra and I share. I flick my fingers towards the fire place, a burst of magic encouraging the salamander to start a small fire. Julian peers curiously at the little salamander while I quickly move to clear the bed of some clothes I had left lying out after getting ready to meet Julian. He moves over to one of the shelves against the wall, studying the items intently. It’s one of the shelves I use for little trinkets and pretty things I find or have bought. He looks to the neighboring shelf, one of Asra’s, and grimaces before he notices me looking. His grimace shifts into one of his bright smiles when he makes eye contact. 

“Are you ready to sleep?” I ask, pulling back the blankets piled on the bed. I had changed into something comfortable while he admired my stuff, but he was still fully dressed. He started shedding pieces of clothing until he was down to just his pants. He blushed a bit as I eyed his chest and then ushered me towards the bed. I slid in between the sheets first, and he let me get settled before joining. I lie on my side, and he curls himself around me, pressed as close as he can get to my body. 

“Are you comfortable?” He asks. 

“No. You’re too bony. Mazelinka was right about getting you to eat more.” He sighs as I giggle at him. I turn my head to face him, and kiss the corner of his mouth. He has a faint blush and smile when he kisses back, putting all his tender affection into the action.

I can’t remember who pulled away from the kiss first, but I do recall hearing him mummer “I love you,” before I fall asleep. 

There’s the smell of tea when I wake up, and some clatter as someone rummages through the food. I almost make some attempt at greeting Asra, before I recall that Asra was on a journey and Julian had stayed over the previous night. I sit up slowly, and squint at Julian as I watch him reach into a cabinet and pull out a plate without looking. I almost verbalize my confusion at why he was familiar with where to find things, before recalling that he was in some sort of intimate relationship with my master… Before I can reflect too much on the history between the two, Julian calls my attention with a bright greeting. 

“Good morning dear. Listen, I hate to intrude, but I thought you wouldn’t mind waking up to some warm tea and something to eat.” I smile warmly as he hands me a cup of tea and returns to fixing the plates of food. Julian hands me one of the plates, before sitting on the side of the bed with his own plate and cup. “That little fire creature is pretty handy. He knew exactly what temperature to keep the tea at and everything.” The talk throughout breakfast flows along the same meaningless train of things, just talking about things in the room or hearing bits of Julian’s travels. The food is long finished when I realize that the sun is higher in the sky then when I usually get up to prepare the shop for the day.

I mutter some curse under my breath as I slide out of the covers, snagging Julian’s plate and cup as I move about the room. I drop our dishes in the wash basin to deal with later, then rush to the closet to throw together an outfit and quickly dress. Julian looks confused as he watches me and I offer a curt explanation of “Gotta open shop.” I leave Julian to dress as I hurry down the stairs, rushing through the bare minimum of my morning routine to try and get the shop open at a reasonable hour. I had just finished arranging the goods in the display case when Julian comes downstairs. He grabs my waist, pulling me close to him. I sigh dramatically as he leans down and presses a kiss to my head. 

“Ilya, I love you so so much, but I really need to get the shop open. At least let me finish prepping before distracting me.” 

“But you, my angel, have already distracted me with your beauty. How can I let such a lovely creature out of my arms?” I giggle as he stoops low enough to press kisses to my jaw and neck, and laugh harder when he lifts me up and set me on the counter. Even with the height boost from the counter, Julian still has a solid couple of inches over me. Now that we’re closer to level, he kisses me properly. We’re both so caught up in the kiss, we don’t notice the shop door opening until it’s a little too late. 

“Hey, did you sleep in today? Or did you just forget to light the lantern?” It’s Asra’s voice, cheerfully calling out as the door swings open. Julian and I are too slow to separate, and Asra spots us as he fully enters the shop. “Oh, Ilya. You haven’t been over in quite some time.” Asra’s voice is cool now, and Julian almost falls over himself moving away from me. 

I reach out a hand to steady him as I slide off the counter and turn to face Asra. “Asra! It’s great that you’re home safe. And very early!” I greet. 

“Yes, Faust and I had better luck then I thought we would. We found all of the items I needed close together.” He says, his voice isn’t cold but his eyes are as he watches Julian and I. 

“That’s wonderful! Well, I’ll just show Julian out and then we can finish opening the shop,” I say with an awkward laugh in my voice as I usher Julian towards the entrance. 

“Thank you, uh, for your hospitality Asra?” Julian mutters as I rush him past my master and out the door. 

“Well that was significantly awkward,” I sigh as I shut the door behind us. “He swore this journey would likely take longer then he predicted so I really didn’t think he’d be home at all today…” I trail off as I watch Julian collect himself. 

“Yes well, things don’t always go as planned. Even including that discomfort, I am very glad I got to spend the night with you. Last night was very enjoyable.” 

“I enjoyed myself too, Ilya.” I smile up at him and he blushes a bit. 

“Well, I shouldn’t keep you. I, uh, hope you have a nice day. I’ll be meeting Mazelinka at her place today, so come find me if you have the chance.” I give my affirmation, and then stand on my toes and pull him low enough that we can kiss. He grins as we separate, and gives a small wave as he ducks into a nearby alley. 

I’m smiling as I walk into the shop, but my expression drops as I find Asra standing just inside the door, with Faust perched on his shoulder. She’s giving me a very judgemental look. 

“So, Ilya spent the night?” Asra asks with a quirked brow. 

I blush as I realize his implication and stutter while trying to reply, “Well, he did spend the night, but it’s not like we did anything!”

There’s laughter in Asra’s voice and he shifts into a teasing expression “You two looked to be having fun this morning anyways.” 

I try not to sound defensive in my response, but it doesn’t seem to convince Asra at all. The remainder of setup goes the same, with even Faust joining the teasing. It doesn’t get to me much, just thinking about Julian’s loving confessions throughout the night makes suffering the teasing completely worth it.


End file.
